Prepayment-meter mechanism.



W. L. BROWN.

PREPAYMENT METER MECHANISM.

APPLICATION FILED 00125, 1911.

Patented Jan. 12, 1915.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 1'..

THE NORRIS PETERS CO1. PHOTO L/THOJWASHINGTON, D. C

W. L. BROWN. PREP AYMENT METER MECHANISM.

APPLICATION FILED 00125, 1911.

Patented J an. 12, 1915.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.v

ZTRGEJT WITNESSES:

H INVENTOR;

\ HE NbRR/S PETERS c0. PHOTOZLITHOH WASHING mm D. c.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE. I

WILLIAM L. BROWN, 0F LANSDOWNE, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOB. T0 HELME &MGILHENNY, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA, A FIRM.

PREPAYMENT-METER MECHANISM.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed October 25, 1911 Serial No. 656,746.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, WILLIAM L. BRowN, ofLansdowne, in the county of Delaware and State of Pennsylvania, haveinvented a certain new and useful Improvement in Prepayment-MeterMechanism, whereof the following is a specification, reference being hadto the accompanying drawings.

' My improvement relates to coin controlled vending machines, and isparticularly applicable to a gas meter to permit a valve to be manuallyopened upon the insertion of a coin; said valve being automaticallyclosed by the operation of the gas meter after delivery of a quantity ofgas predetermined by the number of coins inserted.

As hereinafter described, my invention "includes the combination with avalve congears; a crank arranged to open valve in open position,

trolling the passage of gas through the meter and having an operatinglever with a radial slot; of a valve closing shaft, having a sun geartight thereon, operatively connected with the meter mechanism; a valveopening shaft, in axial alinement with said valve closing shaft,operatively connected with coin controlled operating means and havinganother sun gear tight thereon; a planetary gear frame, loose on saidvalve closing shaft and carrying a screw worm; a counter shaft.journaled in said frame, having two planetary gears tight thereon andrespectively engaged with said two sun and close said valve byengagement in the slot of said lever, having a gear engaging said worm,and, a cam arranged to support said when said lever is releasedby saidcrank; whereby opposite rotary movements of said first two shafts turnsaid worm in respectively opposite directions to open and close saidvalve, and, said index and graduations indicate the extent of movementof said valve.

My invention also includes the various novel features of constructionand arrange ment hereinafter specified.

In the drawings :Figure I is a fragmentary plan sectional view of a gasmeter of ordinary construction embodying my 1nvention, only the topplate of said meter being removed. Fig. II is a fragmentary verticalsectional view, taken on the line II, II, in Figs. I and III; showingthe planetary gearing in position to hold said gas valve closed. Fig.IIIis a fragmentary vertical sectional view, taken on the line III, III,in Figs. I and II. .Fig'IV is a fragmentary sectional view similar toFig. II but showing the planetary gearing in position to hold said gasvalve open.

In said figures; the gas meter 1 has the v inlet 2 by which the gasenters the valve chamber 4:, from which it may pass through the meteronly by way of the port 5 under control of the valve 6 carried by thearm 7 on the rock shaft 8. Said shaft projects through the stuiiing box9 into the chamber 1 10, from which the gas is excluded, and has in thechamber 10 the lever 11 by which it may be operated. The meter mechanismbeneath the floor 14 of said chamber 10 is of ordinaryconstruction,including diaphragms operatively connected with the. rock shafts 15respectively carrying the lever arms 16 pivotally connected by the links17 with the adjustable wrist pin 18 on the crank20.

Said crank 20 is carried on the rotary shaft 21 provided with the worm22 engaging the worm gear 23 on the dial arbor 24, and the latter isoperatively connected with suitable 'is loose on said valve closingshaft 30 and.

carries the screw worm 42, by the sleeve 43. The two counter shafts 15which are journaled in said frame 40'each have two planetary gears 47and 18 tight thereon and respectively engaged with said two sun gears 39and 86. As shown in Fig. IV said valve opening shaft 38 has the gear 50for operative connnection with the coin controlled mechanism in thecasing 51, and, said sun gear 89 on said shaft 38 being held stationaryduring the valve closing movement ef fected by rotation of said shaft 30by the meter mechanism, which turns the sun gear 36 in the direction ofthe arrow marked thereon in Fig. IV; said temporarily stationary sungear 39 is traversed, as a rack, by

'mechanism in the dial box 26 to indicate said planetary gears 47 whichthus turn said planetary gears 48 in the direction of the arrows markedthereon in Fig. II. Said worm 42 being thus turned in the direction ofthe arrow marked thereon in Fig. II in engagement with the gear 53 onthe crank shaft 54 carrying the wrist plate 55 having the crank pin 56engaged in the slot 57 of said valve lever 11, said valve 6 is thusclosed from the position shown in Fig. IV to the position shown in Fig.II. It may be ob served that the cam 58 concentric with said shaft 54and carried by said wrist plate 55 is cut away, as best shown in Fig.IV, so as to permit said lever 11 to approach said shaft 54 to theextent indicated in Fig. II. However, when said cam is turned in theopposite direction by the valve opening movement of said train ofgearing, the surface of said cam concentric with said crank shaft 54supports said valve lever 11 in open position, when released by saidcrank pin 56, as shown in Fig. IV.

The valve opening movement of the planetary gearing abovedescribed, iseflected by the coin controlled operating means in said casing 51including the rotary coin carrier 60 having the handle 61 with the lug62 arranged to encounter the stops 63 and 64 on said casing. Said casing51 has the coin inlet slot 66 in which may be dropped a suitable-coin, aquarter of a dollar, when the gate bar 67 which normally closes saidslot is withdrawn through the notch 68 in the flange 69 on said handle61. When a proper coin is inserted in said slot 66 to operativelyconnect said valve opening shaft 38 with said handle 61, movement ofsaid handle in the direction of the arrow marked thereon, approximatelyone half revolution, rotates said shaft 38 in the direction of thearrows marked thereon, so that the sun gear 39 on said shaft, turningthe planetary gears 47 and 48 in the direction of the arrows markedthereon in Fig. IV, while said sun gear 36 is held relativelystationary, said gear frame 40 and the worm 42 are thus turned in thedirection of the arrow marked thereon in Fig. IV toopen said valve 6.Thereupon, additional coins may be successively insorted in said slot 66and said wrist plate 55 be thereby successively turned in the directionof the arrow marked thereon in Fig. IV until the valve 6 is opened fromthe position shown in Fig. II to the position shown in Fig. IV. Eachprepayment for gas, for which the consumer should be credited, anddispensation of gas, for which the consumer should be debited, beingmanifested by respectively opposite turning movements of said shaft 54;I provide the latter with the index 7 0 tight thereon, which in theinitial position of the mechanism coincides with the-stationary. radialmark 71 in the indicator casing 72, so that the amount of money or gasto the credit of the consumer at any instant may be ascertained byreference to the extent of angular displacement of said index withrespect to said mark 71, which is on the dial 73.

It may be observed that although the valve opening shaft 38 and sun gear39 are normally stationary during the rotation of the valve closingshaft 30 and its sun gear 36; the construction of the planetary gearingabove described is such as to permit of the simultaneous rotation ofsaid shafts 30 and 38 which are respectively arranged to shift the valvein opposite directions.

It is to be understood that I do not desire to limit myself to thespecific type of coin controlled operating means above described or tothe precise details of construction and arrangement herein set forth, asit is obvious that various modifications may be made therein withoutdeparting from the essential features of my invention as defined in theappended claims.

I claim 1. In a prepayment gas meter, the combination with a valvecontrolling the passage of gas through the meter and having an operatinglever with a radial slot; of a valve closing shaft, having a sun geartight thereon, for operatively connecting with the meter mechanism; avalve opening shaft, in axial alinement with said valve closing shaft,andhaving another sun gear tight thereon; a planetary gear frame, looseon said valve closing shaft and carrying a screw worm; two countershafts journaled in said frame, each having two planetary gears tightthereon and respectively engaged with said two sun gears; a crank arranged to open and close said Valve by engagement in the slot of saidlever, having a gear engaging said worm, and, a cam arranged to supportsaid valve in open position, when said lever is released by said crank;and, an index carried by said crank shaft; whereby opposite rotarymovements of said first two shafts turn said worm in respectivelyopposite directions toopen and close said valve, and, said indexindicates the status of the valve controlling mechanism.

2. In a prepayment gas meter, the combination with a valve controllingthe passage of gas through the meter and having an operating lever witha radial slot; of a valve closing shaft, having a sun gear tightthereon, for operatively connecting with the meter mechanism; a valveopening shaft, in axial alinement with said valve closing shaft, andhaving another sun gear tight thereon; a planetary gear frame, loose onsaid valve closing shaft and carrying a screw worm; a counter shaftjournaled in said frame, having two planetary gears tight thereon andrespectively engaged with said two sun gears; a crank arranged to openand close said valve by engagement in the slot of said lever, having agear engaging said worm, and, a cam arranged to support said valve inopen position, when said lever is released by said crank; wherebyopposite rotary movements of said first two shafts turn said worm inrespectively opposite directions to open and close said valve.

3. In a prepayment gas meter, the combination with a valve controllingthe passage of gas through the meter and having an operating lever; of avalve closing shaft, having a sun gear tight thereon, operativelyconnected with the meter mechanism; a valve opening shaft, in axialalinement with said valve closing shaft, having another sun gear tightthereon; a planetary gear frame, loose on said valve closing shaft andcarrying a screw worm; a counter shaft journaled in said frame, havingtwo planetary gears tight thereon and respectively engaged with said twosun gears; a crank arranged to open and close said valve by engagementwith said lever, having a gear engaging said worm, and, a cam arrangedto support said valve in open position, when said lever is released bysaid crank; whereby opposite rotary movements of said first two shaftsturn said worm in respectively opposite directions to open and closesaid valve.

4. In a prepayment gas meter, the combination with a valve controllingthe passage of gas through the meter and having an op-' erating lever;of a valve closing shaft, having a sun gear tight thereon, operativelyconnected with the meter mechanism; a valve opening shaft, in axialalinement with said valve closing shaft, having another sun gear tightthereon, a planetary gear frame, loose on said valve closing shaft andcarrying a screw worm; a counter shaft journaled in said frame, havingtwo planetary gears tight thereon and respectively engaged with said twosun gears; and, a crank arranged to open and close said valve byengagement with said lever, having a gear engaglng said worm; wherebyopposite rotary movements of said first two shafts turn said worm inrespectively opposite directions to open and close said valve.

5. In a prepayment gas meter, the combination with a valve controllingthe passage of gas through the meter and having an operating lever; of avalve closing shaft, having a sun gear thereon, operatively connectedwith the meter mechanism; a valve opening shaft having another sun gearthereon, a planetary gear frame, on said valve closing shaft andcarrying a screw worm; a counter shaft journaled in said frame, havingtwo planetary gears tight thereon and respectively engaged with said twosun gears; and, a crank arranged to open and close said valve byengagement with said lever, having a gear engaging said worm; wherebyopposite rotary movements of said first two shafts turn said worminrespectively opposite directions to open and close said valve. i

6. In a prepayment gas meter, the combination with a valve controllingthe passage of gas through the meter and having an operating lever of avalve closing shaft, having a sun gear thereon, operatively connectedwith the meter mechanism; a valve opening shaft having anothersun gearthereon, a planetary gear frame, on said valve closing shaft andcarrying a screw worm; a counter shaft journaled in said frame, hav ingtwo planetary gears tight thereon and re-' spectively engaged with saidtwo sun gears; and, a rotary element arranged to open and close saidvalve by engagement with said lever, having a gear engaging said worm;whereby opposite rotary movements of said first two shafts turn saidworm in respectively opposite directions to open and close said valve.

7 In a prepayment gas meter, the combination with a valve controllingthe passage of gas through the meter; of a rock shaft having an armcarrying said valve; an operating leveron said rock shaft having aradial slot between parallel arms of unequal length; a wrist platehaving a crank pin arranged to engage said lever 1n sald slot; asectoral annular cam on said wrist plate, concentric with the axisthereof, arranged to permit the passageof the longer arm of said leverwithin the perimeter of said cam when said pin is engaged in said slot,and to uphold said operating lever, by the longer arm thereof, when saidlever is released by said pin; and, means for turning said wrist plate,whereby said valve may be opened and closed.

S. In a prepayment gas meter, the combinationvwith a valve controllingthe passage of gas through the meter; of a rock shaft having an armcarrying said valve; an operating lever on said rook shaft having armsof unequal length; a wrist plate having a crank pin arranged to engagesaid lever between said arms thereof; a sectoral annular cam on saidwrist plate, concentric with the axis thereof, arranged to permit &

arms of unequal length; a wrist plate having a crank pin arranged toengage said lever between said arms thereof; a cam on said wrist plate,arranged to permit the passage of the longer arm of said lever withinthe perimeter of said cam when said pin is engaged with said lever, andto uphold said operating lever, by the longer arm thereof, when saidlever is released by said pin; and, means for turning said wrist plate,whereby said valve may be opened and closed.

10. In a prepayment gas meter, the combination with a valve controllingthe passage of gas through the meter; of a lever operatively connectedwith said valve and having arms of unequal length; a wrist plate havinga crank pin arranged to engage sa1d lever between said arms thereof; a

cam on said wrist plate, arranged to permit 20 the passage of said leverwithin the perimeter of said cam, when said pin is engaged with saidlever, and to uphold said lever when said lever is released by said pin;and,

means for turning said wrist plate whereby 25 WILLIAM L. BROWVN.Witnesses:

ALLEN M. TORREY, HARRY A. MARSHALL.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. C.

